


Why Hide?

by loOkMA_iTyPeLiKeDiS



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Childhood Friends, Gen, High School, No Resolution, baseball AU, soft angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-08
Updated: 2018-12-08
Packaged: 2019-09-14 04:00:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16905720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loOkMA_iTyPeLiKeDiS/pseuds/loOkMA_iTyPeLiKeDiS
Summary: He's The Champion. He's their hero. The Ace.So why is he giving up on himself?





	Why Hide?

_“Alright, batting order for tomorrow: Matt as leadoff, Rolo, Kinkade, then Shiro as cleanup. For the latter half of the lineup, it’ll be Keith, James, Lance, Lotor, and Adam.” Coach Coran announced from his clipboard when everyone had gathered in a small huddle at the end of practice. “On defence, we'll have Hunk as catcher, James on third, Rolo at left, Keith as shortstop, Lotor on second, Kinkade at centre, Matt on first… Shiro at right and Lance will pitch.”_

_Most of the positioning made sense, but when Keith heard the last two, he blinked in shock, nearly doing a double take. And he wasn't the only one who looked a little confused. Even Lance's brows were a bit high on his forehead. He’d been allowed to pitch for their practice scrimmages, but Keith had assumed that was because the stakes weren’t particularly high._

_But this was their very first game of the season._

_And for some reason Lance was the starting pitcher when Shiro was definitely their best._

_“Now, keep in mind that positions are subject to change as the season goes on, but we would like to try this arrangement for now to see how it works,” Allura added with an encouraging smile. “If you’re not where you want to be or if you’re not one of our starting players, I encourage you to still continue to put your full effort forth at practices and games. Pidge? Anything to add?”_

_Pidge looked at Lance. “And if you’re a starting player, don’t get a big head or slack off because there are plenty of other hardworking people who can play the same positions.”_

_“Why are you looking at me when you say that?!”_

_The team started snickering. Allura sighed in exasperation and gave Pidge a slight chastising look. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose with a sheepish smile._

_“Does anyone staunchly object to the positioning?” Coach Coran asked them with his usual encouraging smile. “If you'd like to discuss any changes as a team, I'm fine with that, but keep in mind that these decisions have been based on pre-season training performance as well our practices and of course input from your captains. I also asked Allura and Pidge to give me their input on your abilities and together we came up with this roster. Captains?”_

_Keith glanced at Shiro, expecting him to speak up about not being starting pitcher, but Shiro looked pretty satisfied with the outcome._

_“No complaints from me,” Matt responded with a yawn, resting his hands behind his head. “That's a good starting roster.”_

_“I'm okay with it too,” Shiro agreed. “Lotor, you’ll be Lance’s relief pitcher. And should both of you exhaust yourselves, I'll step in to pitch. Everyone good?"_

_“Yes sir!”_

_“That's what I like to hear, team!” After the chorus of whoops and cheers died down, Shiro turned to Coran. “End-of-practice speech, Coach?”_

_“We’re playing our number one rivals tomorrow. It’s just the first game of the season, so no pressure, but they’ve beaten us multiple times at Nationals so I wouldn’t be opposed if you all wanted to go all out and show them we won’t be letting them take our victory this year. Let's win our first game tomorrow and set the precedent for a fantastic season!”_

 

* * *

 

Keith swung his bat, turning his body as he took a step out and listening to the wind shift around his movements with a whoosh. Then he reset his position and started the process over again. It would have been nice to actually hit some real balls to get some practice in, but practice had long since ended, and Coach Coran hadn’t given him clearance to use the equipment for the night, so limited batting practice it was.

He had a lot on his mind, and this was the only thing he could think of to distract himself from the thoughts weighing on his mind. Lance and Hunk had wanted to go for pre-first game of the season pizza with some of the other juniors, but Keith had declined in favour of trying to cool his head. He didn’t think he would be in a mood tomorrow, but if he was too wired by the end of today, he wouldn’t be able to sleep which would affect his playing.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t hear the footsteps approaching from his right.

“Slider, low, inside," a voice called out just as he was about to swing for the umpteenth time.

Keith inhaled a little sharply in surprise at the instruction of the imaginary pitch, but without a second thought he didn’t step out and rotated his back leg more to angle his faster swing.

“Nice! That would have easily gotten past the shortstop.” Shiro let out a low whistle and clapped as he approached Keith. “As expected of our team’s future captain. Your form is looking good.”

“You taught me how to bat right, after all.”

“Props accepted.”  Shiro’s cute crooked smirk made Keith turn away quickly before he started to stare. “Didn't feel like going out for pizza?”

“Not really in the mood...” Keith watched as Shiro rubbed at his right shoulder, pressing his fingers into the joint in little circles. The slight grimace on Shiro's face wasn't lost on Keith and he found his stomach rolling a bit in unease. “Where'd you go after practice anyway?”

“Allura threatened me and forced me to go to the trainer.” Shiro chuckled to himself as if privy to some inside joke. But Keith didn't find it particularly amusing. “I got a pretty nice massage for my shoulder. You should take advantage of it one day, Keith.”

“Did it help?”

Shiro shrugged, his expression pensive. “It’s a little less tight than before, but I’m trying not to overuse it.”

Keith lowered his bat and stared at him. Why did it feel like Shiro was lying?

“So you ready for our first game tomorrow?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Keith mumbled, wiping his forehead with the sopping towel around his neck. “I’m not too sure about our pitcher though…”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about Lance. He’s not called Sharpshooter for nothing, you know. He’s really come into his own plus he and Hunk form a fantastic battery.”

“I know he’s good. That’s not what I meant.”

His pitches were no speed demons or anything, but he could pitch breaking balls with deadly precision and was great at screwing with the power hitters on other teams because his pitches were unpredictable. Even when they’d been on JV, Lance was a reliable pitcher, but still, Keith didn’t feel this was right. 

He didn’t particularly give a crap about the whole junior/senior hierarchy thing for varsity sports, but it just didn’t make any sense for them to make Lance the starter when Shiro had way more years of experience. Shiro was indisputably the most valuable player on their team and to relegate him to right field seemed a little insulting, even if he himself had played a role in the ultimate decision.

“There’ll be a lot of eyes at this game,” Shiro said absentmindedly, drawing Keith out of his own thoughts as he bent down to pick up a discarded baseball that had been left on the field. “Scouts from everywhere looking into our players. I think they’ll be very impressed with our team this year. Hunk is a fantastic catcher. And I think you’re one of the top shortstops in our state. Kinkade’s probably going to get us a lot of runs tomorrow. And if Lance can pitch a no hitter, he’ll definitely be on their radar.”

Keith straightened up and glowered at him, irritated that he left off the most important person. “They’ll be here for you, Shiro. Because they want to see The Champion pitch.”

Shiro blinked at him and then turned away the slightest bit with an odd smile. “…That so?”

“Don’t play dumb. They’ve had their eye on you for years because of your missile of an arm!” Shiro was an infamous power pitcher of legend for Garrison High. Their ace. He’d immediately made varsity in his freshman year and under his pitching, the team had gotten to finals or semi-finals in Nationals every year. He was Keith and pretty much everyone’s hero. _The_ person to watch for so many years. “Everybody wants you.”

“Everyone, huh…”

“What’s gotten into you?” Keith said hotly, tossing the baseball at him with narrowed eyes. Shiro’s dull expression hardly changed as he caught it, even when the ball smacked against his palm. “You’re about to get so many offers. Your future is set because everyone knows how well you can pitch. And yet you’re trying to hide?”

“I’m not hiding. And no future is truly set in stone, Keith. Anything could happen,” Shiro responded in a measured tone. “Besides, I’m not going to accept any offers from the scouts.”

That was news to him. “What are you talking about? Pro baseball is your dream. This is a chance of a lifetime.”

“I’ve decided to stop playing baseball after high school. I thought about it, and I think this is for the best. I had three great seasons pitching. I’m letting my arm rest a bit this year.”

“ _What_ …? This is your senior year. You should be in the spotlight!” Keith barked indignantly, upset because they’d had this argument countless times, but he never actually thought Shiro would go through with this stupidity. This was the first and only year they would get the chance to play together. And Shiro wouldn’t even be pitching. “I thought you loved pitching. I thought you loved baseball!”

Shiro turned the baseball to and fro in his hand. His expression was indecipherable, but years of their friendship made it easy for Keith to pick up on the fact that Shiro’s grey eyes were glazed over with a wry misery.

“You know more than anyone that I do love baseball, Keith. Can’t say the reverse is true though…”

Keith stared at the ground, his teeth clenched in displeasure. This wasn’t fair. Shiro had only just begun his legacy and right when he was starting to make the biggest impact, when he was about to go places, it was being ripped away.

“There’s no future for me in the sport.” Shiro flexed his right hand. “I had a good run. But by the time college is over, this arm won’t be of any use to me anymore. And I’d rather go out on a high note here than watch my love for the sport deteriorate with my condition. It would kill me if I started to resent baseball.”

Keith clenched his fists, fighting the tightening of his throat and the small prickle of fury stinging his eyes. “You promised we’d win Nationals together.”

He felt betrayed.

To him it seemed like Shiro was giving up on himself, and while Keith could never understand how much heartbreak it must have been causing him, he could see the weary look of fatigue in his eyes and the yearning in his gaze when he walked by the pitcher’s mound. Keith understood that he wanted to protect what was left of his arm, but there had to be another way out. Because Keith was certain if Shiro gave up baseball now, a piece of him would die if he stopped playing.

The Shiro he’d known from childhood would never give up in the face of adversity and would ignore all the naysayers. So why was he so hesitant now?

Keith hated it. And he hated to see the pain hidden deep in his gaze.

“Whether we win nationals with me as pitcher or me as right field, we’ll still be doing it together, as a team, with our friends and the people we love. We have a great team this year, Keith. It’s something to celebrate. Relax a bit and enjoy the game. Have I ever broken a promise to you?”

“Yeah, actually.” Keith rose a brow. “When we were kids you promised me I wouldn’t get in trouble with my mom for shattering her car window with a baseball but I still got grounded for a week.”

“A promise that mattered…” Shiro intoned.

“I don’t know… not getting to play outside for a week mattered to me. It felt like being—”

“Keith.” Shiro set a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. “I won’t break my promise. We’ll win. Together.”

He gave him a soft smile and Keith couldn’t help the heat rising on his cheeks as he stared up in his gentle dusky eyes. How was it that Shiro could simultaneously make him a wreck and feel so supported at the same time?

“Together, okay?”

Keith nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

Keith wasn’t about to let this go for good. He would figure out and resolve whatever had Shiro stepping back like this, but for now, he’d leave it alone. Shiro didn’t seem like he wanted to discuss this anymore.

“So… feel like having a real challenge?” Shiro stepped back and rotated his right arm with a bit of a cocky smirk that instantly made Keith’s competitive streak rise up. “I’m warmed up and you need a partner for your batting.”

Keith snorted, heading back to the box. “Three pitches, three strikes. Just your fastball. I hit past you, it counts as a run, and you’re treating us all after our game tomorrow.”

“That’s assuming you even touch the ball…” Shiro teased him, walking backwards towards the mound as he tossed the ball up a few times. “In all our time doing this, I don’t think you’ve ever once gotten a hit off of me.”

“Piss off.” Keith growled semi-playfully. It was true though. In all his years of playing, the only balls he’d never been able to hit off of a pitcher were Shiro’s. “If I tap or foul any pitches, I’m buying tomorrow. But if I miss all three cleanly, I’m going to ask Lance for his tips on how to flirt.”

Shiro stared at him in horror for a second before he started cracking up hard. “Oh, you’re really serious about this. Those are some pretty high stakes.”

“Yeah.” Keith got set, wrapping his hands around the base of his bat and positioning himself properly as he brought the bat up. “Because today’s the day I hit a ball off you. I refuse to let you retire before I’ve beaten you at an at bat.”

Shiro’s expression was hard to read, but the fond look he was levelling him made Keith’s heart jump in his chest.

“We’ll see.”

He brushed some of the dirt on the mound and then wound up for the pitch, eyes intent on an imaginary catcher behind the batter’s box. Keith let out a slow breath, focusing on Shiro and gripping his bat a little tighter in preparation for the pitch.

And Shiro launched the missile.


End file.
